Many popular forms of recreation and sport are associated with motorcycles or other recreational vehicles. Such vehicles are often transported to an event or a location on a trailer, a pick-up truck, an enclosed van, or other transporting vehicle. Transporting, as opposed to simply riding the motorcycle, is often necessary, as “racing dirt bikes” for example, may not legally be driven on public highways. Also, it may be desired to transport a motorcycle to an event or to a location, instead of riding, because of inclement weather, desire to keep the motorcycle perfectly cleaned and polished, and various other reasons.
When it is desired to transport one or more motorcycles, they are typically transported on a trailer, in the bed of a pick-up truck, or inside an enclosed van. When transporting by any of those means, it is important for safety, as well as for protecting the motorcycles from physical damage, to securely fasten them to the transporting vehicle.
Typical means for fastening include the use of “bungee cords” or straps having ratchet-acting tightening means, which are attached at one end to the motorcycle, and hooked at the other end to anchoring means on the transporting vehicle. The motorcycles are most often oriented in the upright position. Additional devices, to improve the anchoring, can include recessed tracks on the transporting vehicle for receiving tires of the motorcycle and wheel chocks for preventing movement of the tires in forward and reverse directions. If more than one motorcycle is to be transported, the motorcycles are typically arranged to be side-by-side on the transporting vehicle. Other arrangements can include two motorcycles positioned in tandem or four motorcycles positioned both side-by-side and in tandem.
FIGS. 9A and 9B show examples of prior art apparatus and methods for securing motorcycles to transporting vehicles. In FIG. 9A, one motorcycle 1 is loaded on a bed of a pick-up truck 2. Flat nylon straps 3, having ratchet type tensioners 4 intermediate ends of the straps, are attached to the motorcycle and to anchors 5 located in the bed of the truck.
In FIG. 9B, two motorcycles 6 and 7 are loaded onto a flat platformed trailer 8 having protective sides 9. Flat straps 3 with tensioners 4 are attached at one end to anchors 5 and at the other end to the motorcycle to secure the motorcycles to the trailer. Additionally, recessed tracks 10 are provided in the base of the trailer to accept the tires of the motorcycles to prevent them from sliding sidewardly.
In the arrangements of FIGS. 9A and 9B it is also known to use “bungee cords” in place of the flat straps 3.
Although a motorcycle might be securely restrained with use of the various devices described above when loaded onto the transporting vehicle, during transit the devices can become slack due to vibration, braking and accelerating, jolts caused by pot-holes, and similar forces. If the slack becomes too great and the restraining devices become loosened or detached, the motorcycle can be physically damaged, or worse can cause a traffic accident if it falls from the transporting vehicle.